


What Makes Us Human?

by mariechomp



Category: The Walking Dead (TV), the walking
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-06
Updated: 2018-11-06
Packaged: 2019-08-19 23:18:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16544219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mariechomp/pseuds/mariechomp
Summary: They had forgotten. Forgotten what it was like to have something to live for. Someone to live for. Forgotten what made them human. Until Rick came along and gave them a family, people that they could call home.





	1. Days Gone By

Rick Grimes pulled the visor of his beat-up police car down in front of his face and stared at the old family photo strapped down to its fabric. It was old and worn, the corners bent, and you could see a fold mark or two, but it was an otherwise decent picture. One of his favorites. His whole family was dressed for the occasion, his wife's long brown hair was pulled up in a nice, neat fashion, her smile as radiant as anything he'd ever seen. And his son, looking all spick and span, with his pearly white teeth glowing bright under the florescent lighting. They were happy then. He touched the glossy finish, thinking of how much he missed his family. His beautiful wife and his little boy. It made him even more determined to find them. With newfound steam, he slid the picture inside his coat and popped the trunk of the car, grabbing his bag as he stepped out of the vehicle. He was completely out of gas and needed to find some soon or he wasn’t going to make it very much longer. He still had quite a few more hours before dark, but it made him nervous, nonetheless. It wasn't safe outside anymore, not with those things wandering the streets. He looked down the road ahead of him, spotting a little white country house. Hoping maybe the people there had some gas they could spare him, he trudged up the driveway, two bags slung over his back and a red gas can in hand.

"Hello?" he called once he was in shouting distance. He dropped his burden in the gravel, adjusting his hat and took a few more steps toward the house, "Police officer out here. Can I borrow some gas?"

When there was no answer, he abandoned the gas can and made his way up the wooden steps to the front door, peering inside. He rapped on the door a few times and called out to anyone who might hear him, still to no reply. He looked around; cupping his hand to the other windows so he could see inside, but what he found wasn't exactly what he was looking for. Two bodies lay decaying in the back room. Flies and bugs surrounded them along with the blood that had poured out of their bodies after the gunshot that obviously killed them. It looked like the man had killed his wife before pulling the trigger on his own life. Rick shook his head in dismay and took a quick step away from the house, suddenly feeling sick to his stomach. He was obviously not going to find gas or shelter here. He sat down on one of the garden benches when he noticed a pickup truck not too far from where he was sitting. Thinking he had nothing to lose he stood and pulled open the front door and checked for a key with no luck. Giving up, he started back for his bags, thinking he was probably going to have to walk till he found another means of transportation when a noise grabbed his attention. He froze where he was walking and stared at the bushes. He slowly pulled a gun from its holster and held it out in front of him, taking slow, silent steps towards the sound. Just before he got close enough, a gun was thrust into his vision. He jumped back in surprise, holding his own weapon out in front of him in self- defense, but his attacker stopped him with a low, harsh voice, “Hey! You keep your hands where I can see them.”

Rick stopped and slowly lifted his hands above his head. The voice was female. A young female it sounded like. He slowly let his eyes follow her form up to her face. She was young, early twenties probably, with blonde hair down to her waist and piercing blue eyes. She was lanky, and her hands shook, but she stood her ground. Her crooked jaw was clenched in false confidence, but Rick had to admit that he was impressed. She had a good stance and he could tell that her small handgun had the safety off and she was prepared to shoot, even if she didn’t want to.

“Are you bit?” she finally said. He hesitated at first, but he finally shook his head.

“No, I’m not bit.” When she didn’t respond, he shifted his weight and continued, “…

"I'm not going to hurt you." He took a step forward and she didn't move, but she watched him like a hawk. He held out his hand to her and she just stared at him, unwavering. She looked positively terrified and exhausted and Rick wondered what all this poor girl had been through. He was anxious to get moving, but happy that he’d found someone else with a heartbeat. He didn’t have it in him to just leave her here alone. They could help each other out.

"I promise." He gave a reassuring smile. She gave him another once over and slowly let the gun fall to her side. They lingered there for a moment and he waited patiently. He really did think they could help each other. He looked around where they stood and saw nothing that was keeping her here. She seemed to be alone, no vehicle, no pets, not anything. It concerned him that she was so young and by herself, even in the state of things. It was almost worse because of the state of things. Walkers could be anywhere.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but-"

"Isabella." She breathed, cutting him off.

"I'm sorry, what-?"

"Isabella. My name is Isabella Watson.” She gave him one more once over before shoving her gun in the waistband of her jeans. She started back for the bushes behind them, “And I'm sorry about that. But you're the first person we’ve seen that was alive in weeks."

“We?”

It seemed as if she was ignoring him, but she bent down into the bushes and lifted an arm, a little bit tanner than her own skin, over her shoulders, hauling another young woman about her age up off the ground. Rick was a little shocked. He never imagined he’d find one person, let alone two alive and well out here. Well, ‘well’ being a relative term in this situation. Isabella’s friend gave him a hard look, obviously in pain and he could see why in looking at her ankle. She was only wearing one shoe, probably because her ankle was so bruised and swollen she couldn’t get it on.

“Here, let me have a look at that.”

“I’m fine, do you have a car?” The girl said.

Rick was quiet, contemplating. She looked like she was in serious pain. If she was trying to hide it, she wasn’t doing a very good job. She looked just as rough as her friend did – the freckles on her tanned cheeks barely visible through all the dirt and grime and her long red hair was a matted mess. She was tough, they both were, but they were obviously on their last leg. It looked like neither of them had eaten anything decent in days, and the deep bags under their eyes could tell a story of their own. Rick sighed and shook his head.

“Where were you headed?" he said.

"Atlanta.” Isabella said, “I'd heard there was a refugee center there."

"Yeah, me too. That was the direction I was going. We could travel together?”

The girls were silent, obviously weary of traveling with a strange man, policeman or not.

"Look, I’m not leaving you both out here by yourselves. Do you have any bags or anything?"

They glanced at each other, debating on whether to trust this man. They really didn’t have an option. They were alone with no food, one of them was injured, and no shelter. Isabella let the redhead steady herself before letting go to turn back to the bushes. Rick immediately stepped in to help the girl, but she pulled away. The two of them had obviously been through a lot and they had lost all trust in people. Rick didn’t blame them a bit. He had been in a coma when all of this started so he missed all the panic and chaos before the world ended up like this. He couldn’t imagine what had made them like this.

“Millie has her bow, and we’ve each got a backpack.” Isabella called from behind them.

"Is that all you've got?"

"Yeah, was that your car we heard pull up?”

"There's no gas. We'll have to find another mode of transportation."

About that time, the sound of hooves in the dirt reached their ears and Rick peeked around the corner of the house. A full grown, chestnut colored horse was right behind a wooden fence munching on some grass. Bella came up behind him and leaned around the corner to see was he was looking at. She blinked at the animal and looked up at him. He sighed, "Either of you ever ridden a horse before?"


	2. Cozy In There?

After some searching Rick and Isabella finally found some riding gear and they drug it out into the sunlight and cleaned it off as best they could while Millie kept watch. Most of it looked as if it had not been used in years and it took them quite a while to make it usable, but they managed. There turned out to be two horses in the paddock, much to their delight. So, while Isabella finished up with the gear, Rick took a couple of makeshift lead ropes and approached the horses. Millie watched from a distance in the grass and kept and eye out for any walkers that might have heard them piddling around the farm, her hand firmly gripped around a large knife.

Rick approached one of the animals slowly and it whinnied in disapproval. Millie couldn’t help the small smile that pulled at the corner of her lip as she watched him out of the corner of her eye. He really did seem like a good guy and she really wished things weren’t the way they were. She and Isabella had seen enough to know better than to simply trust someone because of their kindness.

“Easy now, easy. I’m not gonna hurt you. Nothing like that. More like a proposal. Atlanta’s just down the road a ways. It’s safe there—food, shelter, people. Other horses, too, I bet.” He finally got close enough to put the rope around the horse’s neck, “How’s that sound?”

Once Rick had both horses rounded up and saddled he and Isabella strapped their things down. Isabella bent down and got Millie on to her feet, keeping her up with her arm over her shoulders.

“You’re the one with horseback riding experience. You should be doing this.” Isabella said.

“I can’t ride with my ankle like this.” Bitterness dripped from Millie’s words and Rick could see that she hated everything about her situation. Not that he blamed her – having a simple injury like hers could be life threatening in this world.

“You can ride with me.” Rick offered.

“No, we’ll ride together.” Millie didn’t even look at him as Isabella led her to their horse. Rick simply nodded. They were like injured puppies and he would need to earn their trust. He watched Millie keep herself steady with her hands on the horse, obviously comfortable around the animal. Isabella on the other hand seemed uneasy, but eager to get a move on. Millie instructed her on how to mount herself onto the saddle, with her long legs she had little trouble hoisting herself up. Once she was situated there was the matter of getting Millie up behind her and Rick approached them.

“Can I help?”

Millie eyed him up and down but seeing no other option she silently allowed him to help. She was small, but her handicap still made it difficult. She called out in pain at the quick movement; so many years of riding and her muscle memory wanted to take over, forcing her to move her ankle. She yelped but immediately silenced herself. Noise attracted those creatures. Rick quickly pulled his hands away once he was sure she wouldn’t fall, afraid he’d hurt her.

“Are you okay?” he asked. She simply nodded, adjusting herself in the saddle behind Isabella. She was quiet, but he could see the tears leaving trails through the dirt on her cheeks. He took a deep breath and returned to his own horse, pulling himself up easily. He could hear Millie instructing Isabella on how to control the horse and he took this time to acclimate himself as well.

 “Just go easy, okay?” he told the horse, “I haven’t done this for years.”

But it was no use. The horse obviously had not been out of that tiny living space very often and as soon as Rick gave the signal it took off down the road for Atlanta, full on galloping. Terrifying as it was, he could hear the girls laughing behind him. Their horse had followed suit, racing its friend through the open field. He held tight to the bag of guns across his chest, but even he couldn’t help but smile. After a half a mile or so the animals slowed to a steady walk, tired after their sudden burst of energy. The three of them were pretty much quiet for the most part. The scenery was nice, but every now and again they could see where a walker had been shot down, or there was a house or two that was boarded up or a complete wreck. It was depressing. They tried to look away, but if it wasn’t something on one side of the road, there was something even more devastating on the other. After a while the silence began to drive Millie crazy. She couldn’t stand to listen to one more _clop_ of the horse’s hoof on the black pavement.

“So,” She started, “may I ask why you’re all alone out here?”

Rick looked somewhat surprised, but answered her question nonetheless, “I’m not real sure to be honest. I don’t know where my family is.”

“Did they get bit?” Isabella said without a touch of sympathy in her voice.

“No, they didn’t.” Rick paused after he answered, watching the road ahead of them. After a while the girls assumed that was the end of the conversation and they began adjusting to the silence again.

“I know I’ll find them.” He finally said. Isabella and Millie looked at him, watching him closely. When he finally made eye contact the three of them couldn’t help but smile. Something about the way he spoke instilled a bit of hope in their chests. But when they passed yet another dead body Millie couldn’t help but stare at it as they went by.

“How do you know?” She didn’t look him for a moment, only turning back towards him when he didn’t answer immediately. He seemed as if he was truly trying to answer with as much honesty as possible.

“I just do. I feel it in my gut.” He said finally.

“So, you’re just running off instinct right now?”

“Well, in a way, I suppose. I woke up yesterday in an empty hospital, no idea the date, the time, what had happened to me or the entire town for that matter. When I went to my house, my family was gone, but so were the clothes and pictures. I know they’re alive, and I know they’re out there. I just have to find them.”

The three of them stayed silent after that. Rick led them down a large off ramp that put them on the interstate towards the city. Towards Atlanta. But it wasn’t anything either of them had expected. Rick brought his horse to a stop and observed the area around them. They were on the road heading into the city, void of cars in front of them as well as behind. But on the other side of the median there were hundreds of cars bumper to bumper, piled on top of one another trying to get out of the city, but not a soul in sight, dead or alive. All the vehicles looked like they hadn’t even been touched for months. Millie looked away to the other side, but she was met with the same devastation to her right. A long train, passenger or cargo she couldn’t tell, but one thing was for sure, it was knocked clean off its tracks.

“Let’s go.” Rick mumbled.

Happy to be getting going again, but unsure of their plan to find safety in Atlanta was valid anymore, Isabella willed their horse to follow close behind. Without all the traffic one would usually see during this time of day it didn’t take them long to get into the city. But to their dismay, it was completely deserted.

“There’s nobody here.” Millie said, looking around.

“That we can see.” Rick looked both ways before deciding on a right turn, “Come on, let’s look some more.”

They kept on their path, looking down every street and every alley for any signs of life, living or dead. There were cars and trucks scattered all over the road as if Godzilla had decided to take a midday swim over to America, toss some vehicles around and return to Japan. They passed a city bus where a few people were still sat inside. They went right past it, but Millie turned her head and continued to watch trying to ignore the bad feeling that was growing in the pit of her stomach. Her eyes grew wide and she sucked in a breath when they started to move, making their way off the bus.

“Bella,” she whispered, “those are walkers.”

One of them stepped off the bus and spooked the girls’ horse. Millie gripped tight to Isabella’s waist as she spoke, “There’s just a few. Nothing we can’t outrun.”

Isabella let their horse pass in front of Rick’s, nodding her head back to the walkers behind them. He glanced back, understanding Isabella’ silent suggestion to stay stealthy and quiet and followed her lead. They kept going down the path of death, decay and debris, Millie acting as a lookout with her head on a constant swivel. She steadied her breathing when the walkers didn’t seem to be walking very fast, but what was caught in her line of sight made her suck in another breath. One of the army’s tanks lay dormant in the middle of the intersection, the body of one of the nation’s soldiers lay limp and unmoving, tossed on top of it like a rag doll. They all cringed at the sight of vultures picking at its flesh. Rick was about to steer around it, but he stopped in his tracks. The girls looked up at him and back behind them where a few walkers were gaining on them.

“Rick, what’re you doing?” Isabella said in a harsh whisper, “Those walkers are getting a little too close for comfort if you ask me.”

“Wait.” He said, staring up at the sky, “Do you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

“Helicopter.”

They were quiet a moment. Listening to the sounds of the dead’s’ moans and soon enough the girls heard it, too. They all looked to the skyscrapers and saw it: a green military helicopter flying overhead. Millie pointed it out and both horses were off in a fast trot, Millie keeping her eye on it the whole time. But she regretted it when they turned the corner onto the next street. She almost screamed at the hundreds and hundreds of walkers gathered in the street. They stopped in their tracks and the horses cried in protest. Fear was thick in their throats and they made a break for the opposite direction, back the way they came, but the zombies had taken over that street just as they had the other.

“Shit.” Rick muttered, looking for a way out.

“Rick, what do we do?” Millie didn’t even try to be quiet. It was no use, they’d seen them. But they dead didn’t even give Rick, the chance to answer and Millie screamed as the horse was dragged out from under her and Isabella. They hit the pavement and Rick lost sight of them, just as the walkers took down his own horse. He was quick to give up the horse, getting out of the way of the walkers’ meal before he became a part of it.

“Isabella! Millie!” he searched frantically for them, but they were out of sight. His eyes darted around, trying to find any sense of reassurance with no luck. He could not find either of them anywhere. But his eyes landed on his bag of guns and he wasn’t sure if he should have been happy that he had found weapons, or scared because the bag was lying right next to very familiar backpacks. He stretched out his arm, reaching for the bags but the walkers were closing in fast and there was no way he was going to be able to retrieve them. Not now at least. The walkers were closing in at an alarming rate and he retreated under the tank, fear apparent in his short shallow breaths. He pulled the small pistol from is holster and shot the ones closest to him, as many as he could as fast as he could. He was beginning to get overwhelmed, they were coming in on both sides and there were so many of them. His breath still just as shallow, he rolled onto his back with the pistol to his head, muttering his apologies to his wife, Lori and his son, Carl. He was about to pull the trigger when he felt the tug of an angel on his shirt sleeve. He opened his eyes and saw Millie trying to pull him inside the tank from underneath with Isabella holding up the door behind her.

“Rick, come on!” Millie was pulling as hard as she could and as soon as he realized what was happening he jumped up and hoisted himself into the tank, Isabella shutting the latch behind him. Each of them scrambled to the walls of the inside on the army vehicle, their breaths heavy. They were silent for quite a while, trying to catch their breath.

“Are you…okay?” Rick asked in between breathing.

“Yeah, we’re fine.” Isabella’s whole body was shaking immensely so he didn’t much believe her, “You?”

“Fine.” He looked around until he spotted a body of an army man leaning against the opposite wall and almost jumped out of his skin. He looked to Millie who had her eyes closed trying to take slow easy breaths to calm herself down. He crawled across the tank and reached for the gun in the soldier’s gear.

“What are you doing?” Isabella’s eyes were wide with panic, looking at him like he was making the biggest mistake of his life.

“Checking for ammo.” He didn’t look at her but pulled the weapon from its holster and sat next to the body, examining the gun. When he wasn’t paying attention, the soldier came to life right before the girls’ eyes and looked right at him.

“Rick!” they screamed, reaching for him. He looked up and wasted no time in putting a bullet in its head but he immediately regretted it. A high pitched ringing sounded in their ears and the pain was almost unbearable, making them dizzy and disoriented. Millie felt like she was going to throw up, and she could have sworn she blacked out for a considerable minute. But when she woke Rick was half outside the top of the tank looking around as if there weren’t mindless zombies out there just waiting to get ahold of his very much alive and not decaying flesh. She could feel herself begging him to come back inside, but he had to know what was happening outside. However what he saw, he never expected to see. Walkers were everywhere. Most of them were going after the horses, but none-the-less, they were everywhere. He could just see where his bag of guns lay bloodied but untouched not too far from the tank, the girls’ backpacks a few feet from his pack, but he couldn’t get to any of them.

“Rick!” Isabella finally pulled him back down and yanked the lid shut behind him. The ringing seemed to have stopped and she looked pissed, “Do you want to get bit, or something?”

“The guns, your bags, they’re right outside.” He said.

“I know. But it’s suicide to go after them.”

Rick thinned his lips and sat back. He knew she was right. They all sat in silence for a while, racking their brains for any idea of their next steps.

“Now what do we do?” Millie asked, leaning back on the wall. They listened to the walkers pound on the tank from the outside. Millie’s question kept repeating itself in Rick’s head. What _were_ they going to do? He sat back, leaning his head on the gun in his hand.

“I don’t know, girls.” He finally said, “I don’t know.”

Isabella watched him for a moment before she let her head fall into the heel of her hand, allowing herself a moment of weakness. She eventually made her way over to Millie, who looked like she was close to tears.

That was when the radio when off.

It started crackling and static came in through the CB. They exchanged glanced but stayed glued to their spot. Could this really be happening? Then someone spoke and it was as if they both stopped breathing.

 _“Hey, you.”_ It said. It sounded like a young man, but all they could do was stare. This had to be a joke. Could this man really rescue them?

 _“Dumbass.”_ The voice spoke again, _“Yeah, you in the tank. Are you cozy in there?”_

 


	3. Resuce and Escape

All they could do was stare. In a world where trust had become a foreign concept to almost everyone, this complete stranger was coming to their rescue. It was as if God was speaking to them from the heavens. They couldn’t believe it, this was really happening. But all Millie could think was, _how in the hell was he going to get them out of there?_ But another thought hit her, what if he wasn’t there to help them at all? What if he just wanted to tease them, or torture them? Treat them like the trapped mice that they felt like. A sudden hatred mixed with her deafening fear and she held tighter to Isabella, who squeezed her hand tighter without hesitation.

 _“Hey, are you alive in there?”_ the voice came again. Rick and the girls looked to each other and scrambled towards the radio, Rick getting to it before Isabella did.

“Hello? Hello?” he said frantically.

The man on the outside let out a relieved breath into the mic, _“There you are. You had me wondering.”_

“Where are you? Outside? Can you see us right now?” Rick seemed to be in a panic, but the girls didn’t blame him one bit. Considering the situation they were in, he seemed rather calm by comparison. They listened intently, their hands holding onto each other so tight they were white with worry.

_“Yeah, I can see you. You’re surrounded by walkers. That’s the bad news.”_

“There’s good news?”

There was a slight pause, _“No.”_

Rick rolled his eyes and the girls fell away from him, quick to give up. They didn’t have a whole hell of a lot of options laid out in front of them. Rick watched the two of them, his thoughts moving a million miles a minute. These girls had been out in this world a lot longer than he had, they’d seen so much more, and they were obviously taking this time to accept their fate. But to Rick, it seemed as if this wasn’t the first time that they’d had to do this. How many times had they been trapped with no way out? How many times were they absolutely sure they were going to die? How many times had they escaped this fate by sheer luck? This stranger on the other end of the walkie was trying to help them, but as far as he knew he did not have a clue as to how he was going to do it. The hope they had just a few moments ago was starting to vanish, that was clear. He could feel the tense fear thick in the air and Rick took a deep breath. This wasn’t the end for them, not here and not on his watch. He reached out to Millie and gripped her knee, speaking into the talkie, “Listen, whoever you are, I don’t mind telling you we’re a little concerned in here.”

_“Oh man. You should see it from over here. You’d be having a major freak-out.”_

“Got any advice?”

_“Yeah, I’d say make a run for it.”_

“What?” Isabella squeaked, he could not possibly be serious, “Is he crazy?”

“Make a run for it?” said Rick.

_“My way’s not as dumb as it sounds. You’ve got eyes on the outside here. There’s one geek still up on the tank but the others have climbed down and joined the feeding frenzy where the horses went down. With me so far?”_

“So far.”

_“Okay, the street on the other side of the tank is less crowded. If you move now while they’re distracted, you stand a chance. You got ammo?”_

“In that duffle bag out there, and guns. Can I get to it?”

_“Forget the bag, okay? It’s not an option. What do you have on you?”_

“Hang on.” He dropped the talkie and grabbed for the gun, checking how many more bullets he had left.

“Look for anything we can use.” He told the girls. They started looking around and Isabella crawled over to the dead walker Rick had shot when they got into the tank. She padded him down but couldn’t find anything of use. She sighed and began to look elsewhere when something caught her eye. She turned back around and stared at it a minute, determining if she should even pick it up. In the end, she grabbed hold of it and stuffed it in her pocket.

“Did you find anything?” Rick called.

Millie announced her lack of findings and Isabella hesitated a moment before she answered, “No.”

“I got a Beretta with one clip, fifteen rounds.” Rick said into the talkie.

 _“Make ‘em count. Jump off the right side of the tank, keep going in that direction. There’s an alley up the street, maybe fifty yards. Be there.”_ Radio Man instructed.

“Hey, what’s your name?”

_“Have you been listening? You’re running out of time.”_

Rick dropped the talkie and turned to his companions. They looked absolutely terrified, but in a way that suggested that they were so used to this way of life that their fear was actually the only thing keeping them moving. He looked down at Millie’s ankle but she just shook her head.

“Don’t you dare worry about me. I’ll push through.” She growled. He took a deep breath and nodded, ready to be out of this tank and ready to be out of this situation. They all were. He grabbed an axe that was lying on the floor nearby and handed it to Millie. At least this way she had some way to protect herself. He pulled the two of them in close, “The only way this is going to work is if you both do exactly as I do, you hear me?”

Millie didn’t respond, but he felt that she agreed with him. Isabella wasn’t nearly as happy, but she grunted her understanding as he stood straight, his hands on the door of the tank above them.

“Okay, now, follow me and if they get too close, whack ‘em in the head with the axe.” He gestured to the weapon in Millie’s tiny hands and they nodded again, jaws clenched. Rick readied his gun, taking a deep breath. He took one more moment before opening the latch, quick to take out the walker that Radio Man had told them was still lingering just outside the latch. He turned and helped lift Millie out of the tank, taking in their surroundings once Isabella was out.

“Go! We’ll be right behind you!” Isabella said, she and Millie making their way towards the pavement below. Rick jumped down and hit the ground, hard. He stood quickly and immediately started shooting as many walkers as possible, keeping the area as clear as he could while Isabella helped Millie hobble towards alley. She’d taken the axe, Millie using every bit of her concentration on moving fast with the least amount of pain. They made their way through the street, keeping a relatively fast pace, Rick killing any walker on sight that even remotely looked at them.

They made it to the alley and turned, Rick with his gun at the ready, prepared to shoot anything that moved, but he stopped when they ran straight into a young Asian man, the man they assumed helped them get out of that tank.

“Whoa! Not dead!” he confirmed, “Follow me!”

Rick let the girls pass in front of him and they took off down the alley as fast as they could after their savior, but Rick was still just as trigger happy, blasting the walkers behind them that were following in tow. Radio Man led them to a ladder and he started up it, but Isabella and Millie looked up after him. A bad feeling settled into Isabella’s stomach. She was strong, but there was no way she was going to be able to get Millie up that ladder.

“Bella, go.” Millie suddenly said. Isabella looked at her as if she’d grown another head, slowly shaking her head with tears in her eyes. But the redhead slipped out from under her arm, pushing her towards the rungs. She was fighting her, but Millie was adamant. She would not let them both die.

“What are you doing?!” the boy called down, “Come on!”

Isabella had tears streaming down her face, calling out to her friend who was standing back to let Rick go up the latter once he’d run out of bullets. One look and he knew was she was thinking, but he wasn’t about to let that happen.

“Hang on.” He picked her up, ignoring her protests and he started up the rungs after Isabella, who was quick to climb once she realized what Rick was doing. He made it up the ladder out of reach just in time with Millie clinging to his neck. Radio Man helped Isabella onto the platform when she got there, Rick and Millie right behind her. He set her down once they were safe and Isabella immediately dropped to her knees and wrapped her arms around her neck. Millie didn’t hesitate to grip her friend’s waist, listening to her terrified threats to never do something like that ever again. All she could do was nod as silent tears streamed down her cheeks. The boys were clinging to the rail for dear life above them, all were trying to fill their lungs with much needed air.

Radio Man looked at Rick, “Nice moves there Clint Eastwood. You the new sheriff come riding in to clean up the town?”

“It wasn’t my intention.” He breathed in reply. Isabella took a seat next to Millie, eyeing this newcomer with questioning eyes.

“Yeah, whatever. Yeehaw. You’re still a dumbass.” He said.

Millie chuckled with a smile, eyes closed and still trying to catch her breath.

“Rick.” He held out his hand, “Thanks.”

“Glenn. You’re welcome.” He shook it.

“And this is Millie and Isabella.” Rick gestured to the girls figures still on the floor of the platform. Glenn looked at them and Isabella gave him a weak wave, obviously unsure about another new person. Millie finally opened her eyes at her introduction and she smiled at him. He found that he couldn’t help but smile back at her. But a familiar noise brought his attention back to the situation at hand.

“Oh, no.” he peered over the rail down at the walkers who were beginning to figure out how to climb the ladder. He took a few steps and stood looking up at the rungs that led all the way up to the roof while Rick helped Millie and Isabella to their feet. That’s when he noticed her bum ankle. How on Earth was she still living? She looked up towards the roof then back down towards the walkers, trying to decide which was worse. She looked back at Isabella and they seemed to share the same thought as Glenn put his hands and foot onto the ladder, looking up.

“The bright side:” he said, “it’ll be the fall that kills us.”

“Lovely.” Said Millie, staring down at the fast approaching walkers.

“I’m a glass-half-full kind of guy.”

Millie smiled at him, but Isabella rolled her eyes as she followed close behind. Millie stared up the ladder with her hands on the rungs, using the structure to take weight off of her ankle, taking in a moment of bliss in the small relief of pain.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be right behind you.” Rick reassured her. She smiled up at him, feeling that he truly meant that. She and Isabella hadn’t been able to trust anyone other than each other for so long, she hoped that there was at least one other decent human out there. She started up the ladder, taking it painstakingly slow with trying to keep her from falling to her death among the walkers down below. Isabella was waiting for her at the top, ready to pull her up the rest of the way when she got close enough to the top. Rick hoisted himself up once she was safely on the roof. There was a sense of peace up that high. They were away from the walkers on the street and any other humans that could harm them, as far as they knew. Isabella helped Millie to her feet, letting her put her weight on her so that she stayed off her bad ankle as much as possible. Up on the roof they were able to walk at their own pace for a change. It was silent among them, the girls taking in everything that had happened that day. It would’ve taken them days to get this far and, with Rick’s help, they’d managed to make it all the way into downtown Atlanta in just one day. As much as Isabella didn’t want to admit it, they owed the man their lives. She tried not to think about it and concentrated on helping Millie hobble as fast as she could behind Glenn.

Rick followed behind the three of them, still trying to absorb everything he’d learned since he woke up from his coma. This world was so harsh, that was apparent by Isabella and Millie’s appearance, as well as their attitude towards strangers. He fell back a bit, stopping to look down at the alleyway on the crossway between buildings.

“Are you the one who barricaded the alley?” He asked.

“Somebody did—I guess when the city got overrun.” Glenn replied, quickening his steps so as to make it easier on Millie. “Whoever did it was thinking not many geeks would get through.”

A silence fell over them after that and Millie couldn’t help but wonder where Glenn was taking them. She felt an odd sense of trust for him deep down in her gut; he saved their lives and they owed him everything, but that did not mean it didn’t make her nervous. She tried to take in her surroundings, but there really wasn’t much to take in – it looked like a roof. That’s when she questioned if Glenn knew where he was going; it looked like any other roof, so how did he know which roof they were on? She told herself she was being silly and that he’d obviously done this more than once, climbing all over buildings and such and it was probably tremendously easy. Her nerves were taking a toll on her, and she did not like it. Not one bit. If something happened to anybody because of her lack of nerves, she would never forgive herself. She let those nerves and feelings of anxiety take over her life before the change, but if she was to survive in this world she was going to have to work hard to keep those feelings at bay. She looked up at her blonde-headed friend. Isabella had always been strong, so much stronger than her. She had her issues, but who didn’t. She was always herself and she never let the opinions of others bother her. Millie always admired her, of all the shitty things that had happened to them, she would always be grateful to at least have one person with her during this shitshow.

Glenn stopped a few feet ahead of them and opened a trap door that led inside the building they were currently standing on. He started stripping off his backpack, nervous energy was pouring off him and he was obviously in a hurry.

“Back at the tank,” Rick said, “why’d you stick your neck out for us?”

“Call it foolish, naïve hope that if I’m ever that far up Shit Creek, somebody might do the same for me.” He threw his pack down the shaft and climbed in after it, “Guess I’m an even bigger dumbass than you.”

Rick and the girls looked at each other as he started down the ladder and the three of them were quick to follow, Rick and Isabella helping Millie make her way down the rungs before Rick started down himself. He took one last look around before clambering in the hole, closing the latch and enclosing them in darkness. When they reached the bottom they were in an almost empty room, completely white, and it was pretty much trashed. There was an exit that led them to another stair well on the other side of the building and Glenn pulled a walkie talkie from his back pocket.

“I’m back. Got three guests plus four geeks in the alley. We’ve got an injury, but no bites.” He said. They stopped at the end of the stairs where a few walkers were wandering aimlessly about the place, their moans echoing off the walls of the confined area. Isabella and Millie tensed up, obviously ready for a fight, but Rick put his arm out in front of them. They reluctantly lowered their defenses and waited quietly. Two persons slammed open a door on the other side of the alley and took a couple of bats to the walkers’ heads. Glenn called for them to follow as he made a break for the same door that his friends had come out of. Rick just about picked Millie up of the ground on his way across the alley and the three of them scrambled inside past Glenn as he held the door open for the three of them. Glenn’s friends ran in after them, slamming the door closed when everyone was inside. Millie and Isabella took a moment to collect themselves, soaking up the fact that they’d made it into the city and were among people – people who were alive. But as soon as they were out of danger, it seemed as though they were thrown right back in it. A blonde woman slammed Rick up against a table, gun pointed right at his face.

“Rick!” Millie took a step toward them, stumbling when pain shot up the side of her leg. She thought her knees might buckle under her, but someone wrapped their arm around her neck, a large black man in a white shirt, Brooklyn written across the front. Her hands flew to his forearm, trying to pull it away from her throat with no use. He had Isabella in his other arm. She was struggling, but her face was stone cold.

“Son of a bitch.” The blonde woman snarled, “We ought to kill you.”

Several of the people around them we trying to convince her to calm down.

“The hell is your problem?” Isabella snarled. The woman looked at her but didn’t remove the gun or her hand.

“You’re kidding, right?” she said, “We’re dead because of this stupid asshole.”

“Andrea,” one of the men, Morales, stood beside her, “I said back the hell off.”

She stood there a moment, gun pointed straight at his forehead, unwavering.

“Or pull the trigger.” Morales warned, and she finally stood down. The man let Mille and Isabella go and the two of them eyed him with dark eyes. He tried to look apologetic, but it was obvious neither of them took it seriously.

“We’re dead—all of us—because of you.” Andrea accused.

“I don’t understand.” Rick said honestly.

“Look,” Morales drug him away; leaving the girls to catch up. Isabella went to help Millie, but Glenn took a couple of strides to walk beside her, letting her lean on him for support. Isabella stuck close by, but she let it happen. They followed the group down a few halls till they came out in the main shopping area of what was clearly a department store.

“We came into the city to scavenge supplies.” Morales was telling Rick, “You know what the key to scavenging is? Survival! You know what the key to surviving? Sneaking in and out, tiptoeing. Not shooting up the streets like it’s the O.K. Corral.”

When they finally made it to the front of the store Isabella looked up and breathed in sharply through her nose, looking right at the two sets of glass doors that were holding the what was no doubt a hundred or so walkers out in the street. They were banging on the doors, trying their hardest to get inside, and at the rate the door was cracking, it would not take them long to get in.

“Every geek for miles around heard you popping off rounds.”

Andrea just stared at the sight before her, “You just rang the dinner bell.”

 


	4. Temper, Temper

"There are so many of them."

Isabella heard her friend breathe the words behind her and turned her attention to her. The redhead was staring at the heard trying to get inside with little to no emotion in her eyes. She felt sadness and guilt in the pit of her stomach. The two of them had been through so much together, even before the change. She used to have so much emotion in those hazel eyes, so much love and so much light, all of that was gone now. They’d lost too much, seen too much, the old version of them was gone forever and they only had each other now. She returned her gaze to the windows and all she could do was stare. Just like her friend, she felt so dead inside. They’d come so close to becoming one of those things so many times it was as if they were living on borrowed time anyway. She sucked in a breath when one of the walkers found something large and destructive to bang against the glass. Cracks were starting to form, and Andrea cursed under her breath, stepping into the shadows with everyone else. Isabella followed suit. All of them couldn't take their eyes off the sight, unsure of what to do, think or say. Finally, a thought hit Andrea.

              "What the hell were you doing out there anyway?" she said.

              "Trying to flag the helicopter." Rick replied.

              "Helicopter?" the black man that held Rose back earlier spoke up, "Man, that's crap. There ain't no damn helicopter."

              "You were chasing a hallucination, imagining things. It happens." a petite black woman with beautiful bone structure tried to explain. Her voice sounded a little shaken to Isabella’s ears. She could feel her temper rise in the back of her throat and she had to bite her tongue till she thought she was going to break skin to keep from saying anything.

              "I saw it." Rick growled.

There was a moment of silence and Isabella could tell they didn’t believe him. She knew they had good reason to but it still made her angry. She turned her torso away from the doors she was staring at but kept her feet planted, glaring at every single one of them. Why did this make her so upset? These people didn’t mean anything to her. She could think of a couple reasons: the helicopter gave her a little bit of hope, something she didn’t think she would ever feel again. But of course, again, who could blame them? This was the middle of the apocalypse. It was hard to trust anyone anymore. None the less, her voice sounded hard and icy when she spoke.

“If that was a hallucination then how did we all see it?” She paused, “I saw it, too. And so did Millie.”

Nobody said a word and Isabella turned back to the walkers trying to get in the glass doors. She felt better after saying what she did, no regrets. The air was tense, awkward ad she stood there, unmoving; she would not be the first to speak, not after that. Morales finally took a small step towards the black man and sliced the silence like a sharp knife would slice butter.

“Hey, T-Dog, try that CB.” He said, “Can you contact the others?”

“The refugee center?” Rick’s voice was full of hope as he spoke.

“Yeah, the refugee center. They’ve got biscuits waiting at the oven for us.” Sarcasm was heavy in the black woman’s voice. It made Isabella want to punch her in the face.

“Got no signal.” The black man, T-Dog, piped in, “Maybe the roof.”

Millie about jumped out of her skin when a gun shot fired and she looked around expecting someone from the group to be on the ground in a pool of blood, but the shot was too far away to be one of them. She looked at everyone’s faces and they all seemed to be thinking the same thing.

“Was that Dixon?” Andrea took off, the others in tow behind her. Morales was the first to reach the roof.

“Hey, Dixon, are you crazy?!” he said as everyone piled out into the hot sun. Isabella had to shield her eyes.

The man, Dixon, fired another shot down at the street, laughing. It sent a shiver down Millie’s spine and she immediately knew she wasn’t going to like this guy. He turned to face them with a maniacal smile planted on his face and Millie glared at him. Yep, she was not going to like him one bit.

“You ought to be more polite to a man with a gun!” Dixon jumped off the ledge and took a few staggered steps toward them, “Only common sense.”

“Man, you wastin’ bullets we ain’t even got, man!” T-Dog approached him, “And you’re bringing even more of them down here on our ass! Man, just chill.”

“Hey, it’s bad enough I got this taco-bender on my ass all day.” He gestured to Morales, “Now I’m gonna take orders from you? I don’t think so, bro. That’ll be the day.”

Millie suddenly had a bad feeling and grabbed hold of the sleeve of Glenn’s shirt, watching the scene unfold in front of them. T-Dog and Dixon were right in each other’s faces and their voices got louder the more they spoke. She looked around and found everyone staring unblinking at the men. It made her wonder if this was a regular occurrence or not.

“’That’ll be the day’?” said T-Dog, “You got somethin’ you wanna tell me?”

“Hey, T-Dog man, just leave it.” Morales’ said in a meager attempt to stop the fight. He didn’t sound very heartfelt about it, though. But after T-Dog ignored him, he seemed to understand he was going to have to try a bit harder, “All right? It ain’t worth it. Now, Merle, just relax, okay? We’ve got enough trouble.”

Again, his attempt didn’t sound like it was doing anything to stop what was about to happen. Millie wanted to step in, say something, but she kept her mouth shut. She took a couple of sensitive steps to her right and pulled on Rick’s sleeve, “Rick, we-you’ve got to do something.”

“No,” Glenn shook his head, “just leave it.”

Millie looked at him, clearly confused and she backed off. But she didn’t like it. Isabella went to her side and the argument continued while nobody did a thing to stop it.

“You want to know the day?” Merle continued.

“Yeah.” T-Dog stepped towards him.

“I’ll tell you the day, Mr. ‘Yo.’ It’s the day I take orders from a nigger.”

Something cracked in Millie and she was done. They were in the middle of a Goddamn zombie apocalypse, trying their best to simply survive day to day and he wanted to bring race into this? He could not possibly be serious.

“Oh, hell no.” Millie let go of Rick’s shirt sleeve and stepped toward the fight, uncaring of the size difference and the fact that he had a loaded gun in his hand, or the fact that she was obviously limping and in serious pain every time she took a step; she would take him down herself if nobody else would. She was ready to take a punch, but Rick held her back and stepped in front of her while Isabella grabbed onto her arms, whispering curses in her ear.

“Hey, come on, Merle, that’s enough.” Rick tried to step in, but Merle struck him right in the nose and he was down for the count. Millie was on her knees beside him in seconds, looking to make sure his nose wasn’t broken or anything too serious. He seemed a little dazed, but otherwise fine, but she was not. The same anger boiled up inside of her again and she stumbled over towards him as soon as Merle started laying punches all over T-Dog’s face. She threw her body across his as a shield and Merle struck her shoulder and cheek bone before he realized what had happened. He stopped and she looked up at him with daggers. She was shaking both from the pain and the fact that she had never done anything like this before and she was sure she would probably never do this again, whether it be because Merle shoots her or because it was the most terrifying thing in the world to her. But she simply did not like Merle Dixon and already felt that T-Dog was a genuine person and nothing like this should happen to him let alone anyone else. They should be fighting the dead, not each other. Merle smiled down at her and her face faltered.

“Well, who do we have here? Little Miss Ginger?” he cupped her chin and lifted her up that way, “Freckles?”

He pointed the gun at T-Dog with his free hand Andrea started to beg for mercy for the both of them. Nobody said a word, scared to move in case Merle did something completely unmoral. The only noise was the sound of everyone’s heavy breathing and T-Dog’s terrified grunts of pain. Millie whimpered, terror in her hazel eyes, black and blue bruises forming on her cheekbone already. Isabella was feeling that same anger for her friend and she tried to take a step in her direction, but Glenn stopped her. She ripped her arm away from him but reluctantly stayed put.

“All right!” Merle finally said, letting T-Dog up off the cement. He gave Millie’s cheek a squeeze and she was tossed to the ground, Merle standing over her, “We’re gonna have ourselves a little powwow, huh? Talk about who’s in charge. I vote me. Anybody else?”

Andrea and the black woman helped T-Dog sit up a bit and Millie leaned on her elbows, glaring a Merle. Glenn and Isabella came to her aid, kneeling next to her, all of them unsure of what to do.

“Democracy time, y’all.” Merle continued, “Show of hands. All in favor?”

A few raised their hands: Morales, Andrea, the black woman and eventually Glenn. Millie and Isabella simply glared at him. Though, when he stared them down with those cold, hard eyes they really had no other choice but to join the others. They did not want to, but what other choice did they have? He had a very large gun in his hand and threw a very persuasive punch. Glenn’s hand rested on Millie’s elbow and she was almost leaning on him for support as her mind raced. What were they going to do? If Merle was supposedly “in charge” he was going to get them killed. He was already getting cocky with the fact that he had them pinned in a corner with no way out. That was exactly what they needed, for him to get a big head. He held his gun in the air, looking all of them in the face, “That means I’m the boss, right? Anybody else? Anybody?”

“Yeah.” Rick took the butt end of a riffle to Merle’s face and Millie’s eyes lit up. She had almost forgotten Rick was still there. She watched him handcuff Dixon to the water pipe they were all gathered next to, hands gripped to the collar of his shirt.

“Who the hell are you, man?!” Merle demanded.

“Officer friendly.” Rick grabbed the gun Dixon had and emptied it of its bullets into his hand, “Look here, Merle. Things are different now. There are no niggers anymore. No dumb-as-shit, inbred white-trash fools either. Only dark meat and white meat. There’s us and the dead. We survive this by pulling together, not apart.”

He put the bullets back in their chamber and Merle simply looked at him and said through gritted teeth, “Screw you, man.”

“I can see you make a habit of missing the point.”

“Yeah? Well screw you twice.”

“Ought to be more polite to a man with a gun.” He held the weapon to his temple, “Only common sense.”

Everyone was silent.

“You wouldn’t.” Merle finally said, “You’re a cop.”

“All I am anymore is a man looking for his wife and son. Anybody gets in the way of that’s gonna lose.” He paused, “I’ll give you a moment to think about that.”

He turned to where Millie, Isabella, and Glenn were sitting perfectly still, staring at him with wide eyes in a way that a small child would look at his idol. Glenn was still supporting Millie’s weight and a very dark bruise was already completely visible on her pale skin. Isabella was holding her free hand and Rick wasn’t sure if it was for Millie’s sake, or her own.

“Are you all right?” Rick asked Millie. She nodded and he headed for the opposite end of the roof overlooking the city. Something was obviously bothering him, but she couldn’t place it. Morales followed the officer, leaving the rest of the group to collect themselves after what just happened. Glenn looked down at Millie. She was staring after Rick with a kind of dazed expression.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” he said, “That was a nasty hit.”

She looked up at him as if she finally noticed was had happened to her, “Yeah, I’ll be all right.”

She started to stand, and Glenn supported most of her weight, trying to keep her off her bad ankle. She smiled and thanked him, still holding onto his shoulder, his hand lightly resting on her waist.

“Not a problem.” He said, “Any time.”

“I’ll hold you to that.” She breathed and went to check on T-Dog, leaving Glenn with a goofy smile on his face. However, that look disappeared when he glanced over and saw Isabella eyeing him a few feet away. He cleared his throat and returned to his backpack across the way. Merle watched with a little bit more interest than he should and gave a slight chuckle. Glenn turned to him.

“What are you laughing at?”

“Nothing.” He teased with an arrogant smile, “Absolutely nothing.”

Glenn rolled his eyes and joined the rest of the group standing by the wall, looking down into the street. He peered over the edge and made a face. There were a lot of walkers down there. They’d need one hell of a plan to get them out of this one.

“How’s that signal?” Morales asked when he and Rick returned.

“Like Dixon’s brain—weak.” T-Dog replied, leaning up against the wall with his legs stretched out. Millie chuckled beside him and he smiled at her. They looked towards Merle who simply flipped them the bird. Millie held up her petite middle finger.

“Right back at you, my dude.” she said.

“Keep trying.” Morales pushed, looking at all the walkers with worried eyes. Millie didn’t blame him, she was terrified.

“Why?” said Andrea next to him, “There’s nothing they can do. Not a damn thing.”

“Got some people outside the city is all.” Morales explained to Rick and the girls, “There’s no refugee center. That’s a pipe dream.”

Millie looked down at the concrete under her legs. This piece of knowledge hit her a little harder than she expected. Deep down, she knew it was true. After seeing what happened to the city, there was no way a refugee center was still up and running. But the helicopter they saw gave her hope, at least some. Just hearing the truth outright really upset her and she pressed her lips together, trying to keep calm. Now was not the time to break down. Isabella kneeled beside her and held her hand. The refugee center rumor was the only thing keeping them going at that point, without that, they simply needed to survive. Isabella remained next to Millie while the others spoke of a plan to rescue them.

“Then she’s right. We’re on our own.” Said Rick, “Up to us to find a way out.”

“Good luck with that.” Said Merle, “These streets ain’t safe from what I hear.”

“’The streets ain’t safe.’” Morales scoffed, “Now there’s an understatement.”

“What about under the streets?” said Rick, “The sewers?”

“Oh man. Hey, Glenn, check the alley. You see any manhole covers?”

The boy jogged across the roof and peered over the edge, “No, must be all out on the street where the geeks are.”

“Maybe not.” Said the black woman, “Old building like this built in the ‘20s—big structures often had drainage tunnels into the sewers in case of flooding down in the subbasements.”

“How do you know that?”

“It’s my job—was. I worked in the city zoning office.”

Maybe there was a little hope after all.


	5. Trapped

They left Merle handcuffed up on the roof and followed Glenn down to the basement of the building with flashlights. There was a railing around a hole that led deeper into the earth and they gathered around it, peering down into the tunnel. It was dark and murky but it was obviously made for humans by the looks of the metal ladder that led into it. Nobody said a word for a few minutes, all of them thinking of what might be down there. It could be something dangerous and life-threatening or it could be a way out. Andrea fidgeted beside Isabella and she looked up at her with a half-hearted encouraging smile.

“This is it?” Morales finally spoke, “Are you sure?”

“I really scoped this place out the other times I was here.” Said Glenn, “It’s the only thing in the building that goes down. But I’ve never gone down it.”

“Who’d want to, right?” Millie’s voice echoed a bit where she leaned over the railing a little too far. Rick grabbed hold of the back of her shirt and pulled her back up. But when she lifted her head everyone was staring at Glenn. She looked at them and it suddenly hit her. Glenn seemed to get the message as well.

“Oh. Great.” Glenn made a face at the tunnel.

Andrea gave him a sympathetic smile, “We’ll be right behind you.”

“No, you won’t. Not you.” He looked right at her but looked away when he saw how taken aback she was. She was almost a little bit hurt by it, but didn’t say anything. He tried to find words, but they just wouldn’t come. Rick finally came to his rescue.

“Speak your mind.” He encouraged.

Glenn took a moment to gather his courage, holding his breath deep in his chest, almost as if he was trying to mull something over in his mind before he spoke to everyone.

 “Look, until now I always came here by myself—in and out, grab a few things—no problem. The first time I bring a group—everything goes to hell. No offense.” He paused, “If you want me to go down this gnarly hole, fine—but only if we do it my way. It’s tight down there. If I run into something and half to get out quick, I don’t want you all jammed up behind me and get me killed. I’ll take one person—not you either.” He told Rick when he was about to offer, “You’ve got Merle’s gun and I’ve seen you shoot. I’d feel better if you were out in that store watching those doors covering our ass.”

Glenn went on to tell everyone how he wanted things to be done. The girls patiently waited in silence, accepting their tasks when he instructed them to wait with Rick. Isabella felt a pang of anger for only a second. She was almost hurt by this measly task of staying out of the way, but she would be looking out for Millie, whom was not happy with having to be babysat constantly. But she knew she wouldn’t be any use to anybody, so she stayed quiet, doing what she was told. When Glenn finished he took a deep breath, like he was scared he’d done something wrong, or offended someone. Rick clapped his shoulder, “Everyone knows their job.”

Millie watched the two and Glenn looked right at her as he held the flashlight in between his teeth and started the decent into the tunnel. He almost looked apologetic. She put her hands on the rail and watched him find the bottom and aim the light towards the direction he was walking and disappear.

“Come on, you’re with me.” Rick put a hand on her back and she followed him and Andrea back to the front of the store. Isabella fell back to help her along seeing as they weren’t in any huge hurry at that moment. The walkers were still trying to break in and they were making a little progress, but not much. Just enough to make them all nervous. None of them said anything and Isabella walked Millie over to look at the jewelry, allowing them some time alone. They both needed some time to think about what had happened to them since they woke up from that barn this morning. All the people they’d met when they thought they’d never see another living person again, how far they’d gotten, what they’d learned about the refugee center that they’d spent so much time trying to get to. So much had changed, and Millie sighed. Rick and Andrea’s voices told her that they’d started some kind of conversation but she wasn’t paying any attention to it. She examined the jewelry that was on display with mild interest, trying to decipher her feelings on everyone and everything. She was worried about everyone, though she’d only just met them a few hours ago. But that was normal for her – or at least it used to be normal for her. Her mother always said she trusted people too easily and one day that was going to get her in a lot of trouble. A faint smile played on her lips at the memory of her mother. She tried to shake it, not wanting to get upset in front of everyone. Now was not the time for that. She glanced at Isabella, who was watching her with a knowing look on her face. Millie took the weight off her bad ankle completely and slid down the side of the jewelry counter so that she was sitting with her wounded leg out in front of her. She was thankful for the moment without the fear of injuring herself further, but she could feel her blood rushing to try and compensate for whatever she’d done to it – torn ligaments, fractured bone, she didn’t know. Isabella took a seat next to her and they sat in a comfortable silence, one that they’d shared so many times over the years. Where Millie sometimes trusted people too easily or was a little over emotional, Isabella was the exact opposite. She hated talking about her feelings, and she was not the biggest fan of new people, and this new environment did not help her at all. Millie always felt she was built for this sort of world. She’d had a bit of a rough life growing up and it gave her tough skin, though you would have no idea just by looking at her before The Change. She was simply a quiet and reserved type of girl. After the Change, Millie adopted her lifestyle in a way. After one too many bad encounters with other humans and near-death experiences, she felt herself becoming cold and hard towards most everything and everyone, save for Isabella, something she never wanted to be, but she had little choice if she wanted to survive.

Around the other side of the display, Andrea was examining the jewelry. Something caught her eye and she held it gently in between her fingers: a mermaid charm on a thin silver chain.

Rick looked back and walked towards her, peeking over her shoulder, “See something you like?”

“Not me, but I know someone who would.” Andrea raised her head with a soft look, “My sister.”

Rose looked up with a hint of emotion in her eyes, “You had a sister?”

“Yeah, still do. Back at camp.” She turned back to the necklace, “She’s still such a kid in some ways. Unicorns, dragons—she’s into all that stuff. But mermaids—they rule. She loves mermaids.”

“Why not take it?” said Rick.

“There’s a cop staring at me.” She said it as if it was the stupidest question in the world. Rick chuckled.

“Would it be considered looting?” she asked.

“I don’t think those rules apply anymore. Do you?”

Andrea simply smiled and took the necklace, sticking it in her back pocket. Rick continued to pace the store and Andrea looked down at the girls who had gotten suddenly quiet. She watched them a moment, just watching. She wondered how they and Rick ended up together on this journey to the big city. None of them looking anything alike so they couldn’t be related. She pondered the different scenarios but didn’t ask. She felt bad for them, being so young and having to deal with the world ending. They looked as if they were probably in their first or second year of college dealing with all the stress that comes with being a student when all their dreams and goals were ripped from their grasp. Andrea moved a little closer, taking a chance on starting a conversation with them.

“What about you two? You guys have any siblings?”

Millie simply shook her head in response, but nodded her head towards Isabella, “I didn’t, I was an only child. But Bella did.”

“Yeah? Older or younger?”

Isabella hesitated, but eventually she responded in a low, uninterested tone, “Older. Older brother, and three young nephews. But they’re gone now.”

She didn’t look at her and Millie simply gave a weak smile. This was obviously a touchy subject and Andrea regretted ever mentioning it, knowing there was nothing she could say that would change what had happened to her. She didn’t know if they’d been killed, or turned into a walker, but either way it was not going to bring Isabella’s family back. She took one step away from the girls when the first set of doors finally shattered, letting the swarm of walkers slam into the next set – which was now the only thing between them and the dead. Rick pulled his gun to a shooting position and Morales, Glenn and the black woman, Jacqui ran back into the room.

“What did you find down there?” Rick asked, his voice slightly panicked.

“Not a way out.” Said Morales.

“We need to find a way.” Andrea said.

“Soon.” Millie looked as terrified as she sounded and had no shame in it. Those doors wouldn’t hold forever and they were still trapped. If they didn’t find a way out of the building soon they were done for. Isabella helped her to her feet and followed behind as everyone ran back up to the roof. Rick grabbed hold of the binoculars and the group stood silent only a moment before he found something.

“That construction site,” he said, “those trucks—they always keep keys on hand.”

Morales took the binoculars and peered through them towards the trucks Rick mentioned, then down at the street. There seemed to be more dead than before if that was possible, “You’ll never get past the walkers.”

Rick turned to Glenn, “You got me and the girls outta that tank.”

“Yeah, but they were feeding.” He replied, “They were distracted.”

“Could we distract them again?” said Millie from Isabella’s side, leaned against the wall.

“Right. Listen to Freckles. She’s onto somethin’.” Said Merle, still chained to the pipe, “A diversion, like on ‘Hogan’s Heroes.”

“God. Give it a rest.” Said Jacqui. You could tell she was as tired of hearing his voice as the rest of them.

“They’re drawn by sound, right?” Rick diverted the conversation back to trying to find a way out.

“Right, like dogs.” Said Glenn, “They hear sound, they come.”

“What else?

“Aside from they hear you? They see you, smell you and if they catch you, they eat you.” Said Morales.

“Hey can tell us by smell?”

“Can’t you?” Glenn said as if it was the dumbest thing he’d ever heard.

“They smell dead, we don’t. It’s pretty distinct.” Said Andrea.

Rick took a look around and sucked in a deep breath. They were not going to be happy about this.


	6. Guts

“If bad ideas were an Olympic event, this would take the gold.” Glenn stared at the rubber gloves Rick had shoved into his hands. They were back down on the bottom floor basement where he had first brought Rick and the girls – Rick had come up with a plan to get them out. Glenn personally thought he was crazy, and it was easy to see that he was not alone in this assumption.

“How much time?” Rick argued, pulling some long coats from a rack, “They already got through one set of doors, that glass won’t hold forever.”

Nobody said a word as they slipped on the gloves and coats and gloves. When they were ready Rick and Morales ran out to grab one of the walkers they had taken down earlier. They drug him inside and Glenn closed the door behind them once they were in. They stood around the body and Rick took a cane to the glass that held the emergency axe, grabbing it and taking a few moments to prepare himself for what he was about to do. It was a lot harder than he thought it would be. Glenn and Isabella shrunk back, looking away when he raised the weapon, closing their eyes, but nothing came. When they opened them again Rick was on the floor patting down the body. It took all Isabella had to watch him as he pulled wallet from the walker’s pants pocket.

“Wayne Dunlap.” He said, “Georgia license. Born in 1979.” He handed the card to Glenn standing beside him, “He had $28 in his pocket when he died, and a picture of a pretty girl.” He took out the photo and turned it over, “’With love, from Rachel.’” He read, “He used to be like us—worrying about bills or the rent or the Super Bowl. If I ever find my family, I’m gonna tell them about Wayne.” He stood up and took hold of the face protection mask and axe again when Isabella spoke.

“One more thing.” She was looking over Glenn’s shoulder.

“He was an organ donor.” he said.

Andrea gave them a soft look and they were quiet for a minute. Whether it was in respect for Wayne Dunlap or just to mentally prepare themselves for what they were doing, Isabella wasn’t sure. But one thing she was sure of, she didn’t think she was going to be able to go through with it. But it was too late to back out now. The axe slammed down on Wayne’s rib cage and she looked away immediately. Cries of protest were spoken from everyone but Rick continued. Isabella tried to cover her nose, but it was no use. There was no getting rid of the smell of dead, rotting flesh that filled her nostrils, making her sick to her stomach. She groaned and looked away from the scene. After a minute or two Rick handed the mask and axe to Morales, telling him to keep chopping.

“I am so gonna hurl.” Said Glenn. Isabella couldn’t help but agree.

“Later.” Rick waved them off, “Everybody got gloves? Don’t get any on your skin or in your eyes.”

And with that they dug in, taking the guts and blood and flesh and rubbing it all over Glenn and Rick’s jackets.

“Oh jeez.” Glenn sucked in breaths to try and calm himself, “This is bad. This is really bad.”

“Think about somethin’ else—puppies and kittens.” Rick suggested.

“Dead puppies and kittens.” T-Dog muttered.

About that time Glenn turned away and vomited anything he had eaten within the past twelve hours. Isabella patted his back awkwardly, trying to assure him everything would turn out okay.

“That is just evil. What is wrong with you?” Andrea looked at T-Dog with a hint of disgust.

“I’m sorry, yo.” T-Dog apologized.

“You suck!” Glenn muttered, still hunched over.

“Do we smell like them?” said Rick.

“Oh yeah.” Andre gave him a look.

“Glenn.” She walked over to where Isabella was still trying to sooth Glenn’s queasy stomach. He stood up straight when Andrea held out a gun to him, “Just in case.” She gave him a half smile and slid it into his jeans.

“If we make it back, be ready.” Said Rick.

“What about Merle Dixon?” said T-Dog.

Rick dug into his pocket and pulled out the tiny key to the handcuffs, tossing it to him, “Give me the axe. We need—we need more guts.”

* * *

When they were sure the walkers weren’t going to be able to tell them from the living, Glenn and Rick stepped outside. They looked at each other and nodded, starting down the street with a fake limp. Morales closed the door behind them once they were off and led the rest of the group back up to the roof so they could keep an eye on them. When they slammed the door open from the stairwell Merle immediately bombarded them with questions.

“Hey, what’s happening, man?” was all Isabella could catch as she joined Millie and Jacqui who were both watching the streets below from the edge of the roof.

“Hey, T-Dog, try that CB.” Morales hit the wall and peered over it with frantic eyes.

Merle continued to beg them to tell him what was going on, but they ignored him, T-Dog’s voice rang into the CB, “Base camp, this is T-Dog. Anybody hear me? Can anybody out there hear me?”

“There.” Morales finally found them through the binoculars and everyone directed their attention to where he was pointing. Thunder crashed, and he and Isabella looked to the sky. The clouds were dark and moving fast. She had been hearing it all day but thought nothing of it, thinking it wouldn’t concern them or be a problem in any of their plans but now she wasn’t so sure. She watched the two in the street anxiously, trying to ignore Merle’s obnoxious voice but it wasn’t doing her much good.

“That asshole is out on the street with the handcuff keys?” he was saying.

She turned to face him from the wall she was leaning over with an annoyed expression plastered on her freckled face, “You know, Rick’s not as much of an asshole as you make him out to be.”

Merle furrowed his brow but his eyes widened in surprise when T-Dog held up the key he so desperately wanted. Isabella rolled her eyes and continued to watch Glenn and Rick on the street while T-Dog tried the CB again, “Hello, base camp! Can anybody out there hear me?” he waited a second, “Base camp, this is T-Dog. Anybody hear me?”

 _“Hello? Hello? Reception’s bad on this end. Repeat. Repeat.”_ A man’s voice came from the other end and excitement shot through everyone, their attention yanked away from their friends walking among the dead.

“Shane is that you?” he said, “We’re in some deep shit. We’re trapped in the department store. There are geeks all over the place. Hundreds of ‘em. We’re surrounded.”

There was static, then nothing.

“They’re gone.” he whispered, leaning back against the brick in disappointment and frustration. But just when they thought it couldn’t get worse, it started to rain. Everyone exchanged terrified looks and the girls’ eyes darted till they found Glenn and Rick. They were so close to the construction site, it was making both of them fidget.

“It’s just a cloudburst.” Morales reassured, “We get ‘em all the time. It’ll pass real quick.”

Millie looked skeptic, but hopeful. He returned to the binoculars and she looked to the street. They just had to make it. There was no way they couldn’t, that just wouldn’t happen to them. She could feel herself start to bite her lower lip when some of the walkers looked as if they were getting suspicious. They were starting to smell what they really were: alive. She started shifting her weight from hip to hip as much as she could considering her injury; they were going to make it, she just knew it. She could feel it. But all the sudden Rick took an axe to one of their heads and Millie knew it was over. The two took off running and her hands flew to her mouth in terror. Morales was edging them on as they jumped over the fence to get into the construction site. Gun shots were fired before they jumped into one of the trucks, Glenn making it just before one of the walkers got to him. They drove off as the other walkers took down the fence. Morales, Isabella, Millie, Andrea and Jacqui watched the truck the leave their sight.

“They’re leaving us.” Said Andrea. They started to panic, and Millie tried to ignore them, watching for the van to come back. Leaving them was not something Rick would do, she just knew it. He had a plan and he was coming back. She had faith, but everyone around her were so loud she couldn’t concentrate on anything. She looked up at Isabella and found her face emotionless, as if she’d expected this to happen. To be fair, she probably did expect this to happen. She was always saying they shouldn’t trust anyone but each other, and this was just something else to prove her point. But Millie wanted so bad to believe in Rick, and she was trying to listen for the CB or the truck or a yell, something to tell her what she needed to do or what Rick wanted them to do. Trust was going to be their only way out at this point and the group seemed to have lost sight of that amid their fear. She could understand that, she had fears and worries, but one thing she had always grew up on and put most of her faith in was trust. That was how she had survived this long, and it was going to be how she survived now.

“Hey!” she whipped around, and they were suddenly silent, “Rick’s got a plan. Trust him.”

It wasn’t much, but a few minutes passed in nervous silence. When she finally started to think she might be wrong and they left them to die, Glenn’s voice came on the CB.

 _“Hey guys, listen.”_ He said.

Everyone turned to Millie and she sighed a breath of relief with a small but proud smile, “Told you.”

_“Those roll up doors at the front of the store facing the street—meet us there and be ready.”_

The CB went dead and they wasted no time in grabbing their things and running for the door. Merle screamed and kicked and begged them to save him, yelling at the top of his lungs as T-Dog helped Isabella get Millie to the door. Everyone else was already in the stairwell when T-Dog stopped when, closing his eyes in what was clearly in inner battle. The girls turned to him with wide eyes, a string of curse worse hanging on the end of Isabella’s tongue, now was not the time for this. She looked to the door and Morales was standing there waiting for them.

“We’ve gotta go!” he said.

T-Dog took one more look at Merle and sighed, “Morales, help them.”

He hesitated, but when T-Dog left the girls to struggle he was quick to jump in and get them down the stairs as quick as he could. Andrea was screaming for them to hurry and they ran as fast as they possibly could. Down the stairs, through the front of the store past the walkers still trying to get in through the glass and into the storage garage.

“What about T-Dog?” Millie cried once they stopped, catching their breath.

Jacqui, Andrea, Morales, and Isabella seemed to ignore her as they took hold of the chain to open the door, breathing heavy. But something caught their attention and they stopped.

“What is that?” said Morales. The noise was getting louder and louder as it approached the outside of the store.

“It sounds like some kind of alarm.” Millie listened as closely as she could, but she broke her concentration when she heard T-Dog shout for them to wait for him. She hobbled to the opening where they came in and went wide eyed. The walkers had broken the glass on the second set of doors. T-Dog was yelling for them to hurry up. He threw her over his shoulder just as a bang on the door told them to pull on the chain and they started throwing bags and supplies onto the truck waiting for them on the other side. T-Dog made sure that Millie and Isabella got into the truck with everyone else before he clambered in himself. They closed the door just in time and they took off through the streets of Atlanta. Everyone was quiet, breathing heavily and Rick looked back at the group to make sure everybody had gotten in. Morales sat in the passenger seat staring at the road and behind him Millie latched onto T-Dog’s shirt with his arm around her. Tucked in the corner behind Morales’ seat, Andrea and Jacqui held onto one another like they were each other’s life support.

“I dropped the damn key.” T-Dog grunted through gritted teeth, breaking the silence of their victory. Millie looked up at him and nobody said a word, everyone suddenly feeling guilty for leaving Merle trapped on the roof under the hot Atlanta sun. None of them were sure of what they were supposed to say, really. But something hit Millie and she felt the question rise in her throat before she even had a chance to think about it.

“Where’s Glenn?”


	7. Reunited

“Best not to dwell on it. Merle got left behind.” Morales tried to comfort Rick as they drove down the deserted road, “Nobody’s gonna be sad he didn’t come back, except maybe Daryl.”

“Daryl?” Rick looked at him.

“His brother.”

It was quiet again after that. Everyone was exhausted, and Millie had actually fallen asleep in the back corner of the truck with her head lulled against Isabella’s shoulder. Andrea and Jacqui weren’t too far from sleep themselves. After a few moments of silence, the sound of a far-off car alarm made Millie’s eyes flutter open. Rick glanced out his window and saw Glenn drive by in a bright red Charger at an ungodly speed with the alarm still blaring. He drove on pass them and down the road, out of sight.

“At least somebody’s having a good day.” Morales said with a smile.

The rest of the ride back was silent, with some taking a short cat-nap, though most awoke when they got up into the hills and the truck started rocking back and forth. It wasn’t long after that when they finally came to a screeching halt and everything began to gather themselves to exit the vehicle.

“Come meet everybody you three.” Millie could faintly hear Morales in her fog of waking. She blinked and rubbed her eyes until they came into focus, the bright sunlight making her shrink back when they opened the back of the truck and went to meet everyone at the camp. Isabella watched through the windshield as Andrea reunited with her sister. There were smiles and hugs all around the camp and Isabella simply sat back down next to Millie, who gave her a knowing smile. This was never what they wanted – to be a part of a group or community again. The world of today played host to evil and untrustworthy people and as far as they were concerned, that’s how it was always going to be. Unbeknownst to them, Rick was still in the truck with them until he spoke.

“Are you two gonna be alright?”

Isabella jumped a little and Millie suddenly felt guilty. He was probably thinking of his family and her nature was to try and comfort him, but she wasn’t sure she even remembered how to feel compassion for people like that. Lord knew Isabella didn’t – she barely showed any type of emotion before the Change, let alone now. They could hear everyone outside the truck greeting the people who had gone off to gather supplies and Rick waited patiently for them to answer. He didn’t know them well, and he especially didn’t know what had happened to them before he met them, but he had a feeling that whatever it was involved a lot of deception and betrayal of some sort. Neither of them really didn’t handle new people very well.

“We’ll live. Go ahead.” Millie finally smiled up at him. At least she and Isabella knew what happened to their family, Rick didn’t even know if his wife and son were alive. Rick nodded, glancing down at Isabella before he opened the door and stepped outside. Isabella laid her head on her knees and Millie scooted closer to her, taking in the silence of just the two of them together. Did they really want to do this again? Join another community? It had never ended well for them before, so what makes this time any different?

“This one could be different.” Millie finally said, always the one to look on the bright side of things.

“Isn’t that what you said last time?” Isabella replied.

“Maybe. But what choice do we really have? I’m not going very far on this ankle.”

Isabella didn’t reply immediately, considering her friend’s answer with care. She was absolutely right; until her ankle was at least a little healed she wouldn’t be moving much faster than a turtle in quicksand. She sighed, “We could have them drop us off further up the road. We could find somewhere to hold up until you can get back on your feet.”

“And leave you to do all of the work by yourself? Bella, I know you think everything out there is out to get us, but- “

“That’s because everything is out to get us, Millie!” her voice was harsh, but no louder than a whisper. Millie was a bit taken back by her tone, but she simply sighed and leaned her head back on the wall of the truck. Isabella took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. She could feel the tears brimming but she wouldn’t let them fall. She never did, she never allowed herself weakness. She believed that the moment you showed a weakness like that, that was the moment that you lost. The moment that you threw in the towel, and inadvertently it was the moment you died in this world.

The girls sat quietly again, listening to the hustle and bustle going on outside the truck. When Millie couldn’t stand it anymore she sighed and lulled her head to the side, catching Isabella’s eye, “Look, you know I’m right about being too weak to go any further without a solid break. This doesn’t have to be permanent. Give me a week to keep off my ankle and maybe I’ll at least be well enough to carry myself on my own.”

Isabella was silent.

“Deal?” Millie urged.

Defeat seeped from her thin lips, but she finally agreed. Millie was unashamed to smile in relief. She was obviously in a lot of pain and trying to hide it for the sake of everyone else. Though now that everyone was out of danger she was letting more of what she was really feeling bleed through. She reached over her knees and held her ankle, hissing silently to herself, as if she’d been tensing for so long to keep the pain at bay and now she was relaxing, and the adrenaline had finally vanished from her veins and she was feeling the full effect of the injury.

“Millie? Isabella?”

The girls looked up and saw Glenn peering into the back of the truck with a look of fear and concern on his face. Afraid of interrupting or intruding where he didn’t really belong, but genuinely concerned for the both of them. He was a nice boy, and Millie really liked him. She rubbed her face with both hands and took a deep breath.

“Hey, Glenn.” She said.

“Are you guys alright?” he said, sitting on the edge of the truck.

“We’re fine, thank you, Glenn.”

“I was worried when you two didn’t come out of the truck. I thought maybe you guys didn’t make it out of the city.”

“It’ll take a lot more than that to take us down.” Isabella commented. Her tone gave a lighthearted vibe, but Glenn could hear the truth in the statement. These two had obviously been through a lot, much like most of the people here.

“Sorry for the scar. We’re still alive and kickin’.” She chuckled, shrugging. “We’re just not the biggest fans of new people these days.”

Isabella side-eyed her, obviously not wanting their business to get around camp but Millie didn’t see the harm in admitting the truth to one person. They couldn’t possibly be the only ones with trust issues in this world with the way things were now.

“Don’t worry, they’re all still alive.” Glenn nudged her, and she chuckled.

“Millie! Isabella!” Rick called from outside.

“I guess that’s our cue.” Isabella sighed and scooted to the lip of the truck next to Glenn, who stood to help Millie carefully crawl out of the vehicle, letting her lean on him to keep off of her bad ankle. Rick came jogging around the corner, worry evident on his face when the girls didn’t reply to his calls. When he saw that they were okay and simply trailing behind a bit, he got the biggest smile on his face and that’s when Millie noticed it looked like he’d been crying.

“Rick what’s wrong?” she asked.

“I found my family, and I want you both to meet them.”


	8. As Close As Family

“Disoriented. I guess that comes closest.” Rick explained his story to those listening around the campfire later that night. It was late and the afternoon had been spent much like most afternoons at camp, or at least that’s what Glenn told Isabella and Millie. Everyone had something to do to keep the place running, much like things had been before the Change. They had spent most of the day letting Millie rest her ankle. Isabella allowed Glenn to give her a quick tour of the camp, but once they were done she was back at her friends side, clearly uncomfortable with all of the new people. Glenn went about his business, though he frequently came by to check on them. He was obviously nervous, unable to look them in the eye, but his kindness was just as obvious. Millie found it endearing, but Isabella  was not as on board with the idea of making a new friend. She remained quiet when people of the camp would stop by to introduce themselves, nodding and uttering her responses under her breath. In her experience, people only cared about themselves, especially in this world. No thought to those around them. Why should this camp be different?

It was dark, only the smallest of fires to illuminate the people she and Millie were sat with. She looked at the people around her. Amy and Andrea sat cuddled on the other side of where she was sitting next to Millie. Next to them, was Dale. Millie told her that she had thought he seemed nice; she liked him quite a bit. His kind and caring nature was a nice change from the hostility in the city. T-Dog was okay, but she hadn’t really talked to him much. He had the same trust-issue tendencies that she did, so she could relate to him on a personal level. She turned to Rick and his newly reunited family, surprising herself when she could help the small smile that tugged at the corner of her lips. Little Carl was a cute kid, and he seemed smart for his age. He reminded her of her nephews and the thought immediately got rid of the smile and any happiness she’d felt just then. Thinking of all the weekends she’d spent babysitting them made her chest tighten and she sucked in a deep breath. Now was not the time. Hopefully they were in a better place now, whereas Carl was going to have to grow up in this unforgiving world. Her eyes found Lori’s face, Rick’s wife. She liked her okay, but something about her just seemed off. Glenn sat close to Millie on her other side.

“Fear, confusion—all those things but, disoriented comes closest.” Rick continued, bringing Isabella from her thoughts.

“Words can be meager things.” Said Dale, “Sometimes they fall short.”

“I felt like I’d been ripped out of my life and put somewhere else. For a while I thought I was trapped in some coma dream, something I might not wake up from ever.”

Millie watched Rick as he spoke. He held tight to his wife and stroked his son’s hair absentmindedly. There was a connection, a bond between Rick and Isabella and herself, she felt. Something that couldn’t be broken.  A brotherly, fatherly type thing. He saved their lives, whether Isabella wanted to admit it or not. If they’d stayed on that farm, there’s no telling what would have happened to them. They had no more food, she was injured, and no means of transportation. She sighed and rested her head on her friend’s shoulder.

“Mom said you died.” Carl looked up at his father.

“She had every reason to believe that.” Said Rick, “Don’t you ever doubt it.”

“When things started to get really bad, they told me at the hospital that they were going to medevac you and the other patients to Atlanta and it never happened.” Lori explained.

“Well, I’m not surprised after Atlanta fell. And from the look of that hospital, it got overrun.”

“Yeah, looks don’t deceive.” Shane said. Isabella looked at him and she could feel the glare on her face. She didn’t like him. She didn’t really know why, she just had a bad feeling about him. She rolled her eyes as he continued to speak, “I barely got them out, you know?”

“I can’t tell you how grateful I am to you, Shane. I can’t begin to express it.”

“There go those words falling short again.” Dale smiled, “Paltry things.”

Millie gave a soft chuckle, staring down at her hands. When she looked up everyone was looking at her. She gave them an innocent _what-did-I-do?_ face. Rick chuckled, “And then I came across these two, toughing it out on their own.”

“We had no other choice.” Isabella retorted, “That’s how the world works now, get tough or die.”

Everyone was silent at her words, and she wasn’t looking at anyone. After a moment, she stood and walked away, clearly wanting to be alone. Millie simply looked down at the grass under her legs. The group looked at her expectantly, but she remained silent. She may have been a little more open-minded about people, but she’d learned that a person’s past could be someone else’s greatest weapon. The sound of a log thrown on the fire directed everyone’s attention to the small fire behind Rick and his family. A large, scary looking man and a woman with cropped, silver hair sat around another fire. A small girl with short blonde hair was seated next to the woman. They looked a little afraid, but Millie wasn’t really sure of what.

“Hey, Ed, you wanna rethink that log?” said Shane. Millie felt her anxiety rise in her throat, but remained silent.

“It’s cold, man.” Ed replied, bringing a cigarette to his mouth.

“The cold don’t change the rules, does it? Keep our fires low, just embers, so we can’t be seen from a distance, right?”

“I said it’s cold. Why don’t you mind your own business for once?”

Everyone was quiet as Shane stood and approached Ed and what appeared to be his family. Millie turned back to their own fire, trying to avoid the scene behind her. Truthfully she just wanted to go to sleep, but she wasn’t sure where she was sleeping at that point. She yawned and waited for Shane to return and when he did Dale spoke up.

“Have you given any thought to Daryl Dixon? He won’t be happy to hear his brother was left behind.”

Millie felt a pang of guilt in the pit of her stomach. She was starting to regret letting them leave Merle up there like that. Yeah, he was being a douche, but his brother loved him. Well, at least she assumed his brother loved him. Who knew? At this point, they may simply tolerate each other because they’re all they’ve got left. And even then leaving someone’s brother on a roof to die sounded like the worst thing on the planet to Millie right then. She pulled her knees to her chest and rested her chin on her kneecaps.

“I’ll tell him.” T-Dog said, “I dropped the key. It’s on me.”

“I cuffed him. That makes it mine.” Rick argued.

“Guys, it’s not a competition.” Glenn said, “Look, it’s not anybody’s fault. Merle needed to take a chill pill in the first place. You tried to help, it was an accident. And I hate to bring race into this, but it might sound better coming from a white guy.”

“I did what I did. Hell if I’m gonna hide from him.” T-Dog replied.

“We could lie.” Amy suggested.

“Or tell the truth.” Said Andrea, “It’s like Glenn said, Merle was out of control. Something had to be done or he’d have gotten us killed.” She looked at Lori and her family, “Your husband did what was necessary. And if Merle got left behind, it is nobody’s fault but Merle’s.”

“And that’s what we tell Daryl?” said Dale. The guilt rose in Millie’s throat and she held back a groan, taking a deep breath. Dale continued, “I don’t see a rational discussion to be had from that, do you? Word to the wise—we’re gonna have our hands full when he gets back from his hunt.”

“I was scared and I ran. I’m not ashamed of it.” Said T-Dog.

“We were all scared. We all ran.” Millie stared at the fire, her chin still in her knees and her arms were wrapped around her legs for warmth, “I don’t think anybody blames you.”

“Yeah, what’s your point?” said Andrea.

“I stopped long enough to chain that door. Staircase is narrow. Maybe half a dozen geeks can squeeze against it at any one time. It’s not enough to break through that—not that chain, not that padlock.” T-Dog explained.

Millie looked at Glenn with a look of realization. She turned back to the fire, “So what you’re saying is Merle’s alive?”

“He’s alive. And he’s still up there, handcuffed on that roof. That’s on us.”

 


End file.
